UNBOXING

Experimental, Feature, Short, Drama

Kazakhstan

2025

Runtime, min

“UNBOXING” is a visual metaphor for how consumer addiction has become a new norm passed from hand to hand like a product, a virus, a reflection of our times. The film explores compulsive shopping as a symptom of contemporary life, exposing a dependency that's often hard to recognize and perhaps even harder to break. Are we unboxing products or peeling back something deeper?

Directors:

Olga Uldanova

Directors:

Roman Vaidov

Directors:

Roman Zakharov

Selections and Awards:

Despite its minimalistic nature, the film has already travelled widely and received recognition: 🎬 Debuted at a film festival in Mexico 🏆 Won “Best Actor–Director” at a U.S. film festival 🏅 Nominated at the International Short Film Festival in the U.S. 🌍 Official selections in Italy, the United Kingdom, Turkey, Greece, Spain, India, and Egypt We are sincerely happy and deeply honored to have UNBOXING selected for your respected and inspiring festival. Thank you for giving independent, experimental cinema a platform and for welcoming our team.

REVIEWS:

The girl sitting amidst plastic and boxes on the purple background looks lost. This is excellent anti-advertising for Black Friday.'The film shows that things don't fill the void. They just clutter the space and steal our time.

Harper Gagné

So ironic. The directors use the same techniques as advertising. Bright colors, close-ups of unboxing to evoke disgust for shopping. It represents a deconstruction of the commercial video genre. it's how a product turns into an addiction.

Javier Martinez Perez

Curious use of color. The transition from aggressive pink to the sterile white space, where the character looks at the hourglass, creates a strong contrast. It’s not a narrative in the traditional sense, but a visual essay. I like how the static shots build tension.

Ana Diaz Garcia

The Shopaholic above the writing man is a diagnosis given to our times.

Andrew Kanivchenko